Prince Philip and his son, Charles, were never on the same page. A real heartbreaker for the Prince of Wales, who has always tried, in vain, to get closer to his parents, as Gyles Brandreth, close to the royal family, told the Daily Telegraph in 2004.
This Wednesday, June 10, Prince Philip blew out his ninety-ninth candle. Confinement obliges, it is with the Queen, whom he found in Windsor, but far from his children and grandchildren that the Duke of Edinburgh will celebrate the event.
A hard blow for Prince Charles, who misses his loved ones terribly, but not necessarily for his father, who never managed to create real ties with the future monarch.
Gyles Brandreth, who has been close to Prince Philip for many years, had let himself go into a few confidences about their relationship in 2004 with our colleagues at the Daily Telegraph, as reported by The Express.
According to the former Conservative MP, the eldest son of Elizabeth II was always seen as “a romantic” by the Duke, who, “with a slightly desperate laugh”, told him of their differences. “I am pragmatic (…) it means that we see things differently,” Prince Philip would have sighed to his interlocutor, assuring him that he was “insensitive”, unlike his son.
“Emotionally different” from his parents
A nuanced value judgment by Gyles Brandreth, who is less severe with his friend. “In my humble opinion, Prince Philip is pragmatic and not sentimental, but he is far from being insensitive,” the author assures.
Determined to “harden” Charles, whom he considered “too soft”, the Duke was nevertheless uncompromising. Much to his son’s chagrin, judging him too severe and feeling “emotionally different” from both his parents. The Prince of Wales was disappointed that he had not received the gestures of affection he so desired from his parents, and he made sure that the same pattern would not be repeated with his sons, William and Harry.
Meghan Markle’s husband was grateful and made a point of publicly thanking him in 2017 in an interview with the BBC. Referring to his mother’s tragic death, Harry paid tribute to his father, who, in these terrible times, offered them unfailing support.
“He was there for us. He was the one who was left. He tried his best to make sure that we were protected and surrounded even though he was going through the same grieving process,” said Harry, conscious of his good fortune to have a future monarch as a father who was more than concerned about his happiness.
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